Alma record. (Alma, Mich.) 1878-1928, 1887-02-11
THE LEGISLATURE ADJOURNs
For Recess Until February Is News
Gathered in and About the Capitol
LANSING, Feb. Z, 1887.

The bill creating an additional judge for
the supreme court OF the state, and In
creasing the term of Office To ten years,
instead of six. has passed the senate, ana
that, too, with but one dissenting voice;
Rairden the new senator from wayne.
voting i'm the negative The bill as passed
does not effect the increase of salary and
that question will be made the subject OF
special order
Hubbell's Joint resolution to the consti-
tuition, making the salary or governor
$1,000, the attorney general S3,OOO, the
state treasurer, the secretary or state ana
the commissioner of laud office each ~
500 and the superintendent or pubic IN
struction s., 500, passed the senate without
discussion, yeas - nays D.
A delegation OF good men and women
who want the age Of consent" in females
raised TO Is years appeared before the
judiciary committees OF the senate ana
house the other morning. Dr. L. Anna
Ballard OF Lansing representing the state
department. OF social purity, opened the
discussion 10y reading a carefully prepared
paper in which she took strong grounds
that the limit should not be fixed at Ia or
10, but should Toe placed as high "a Is years.
Mrs. Rachel Bailey of Hastings representa-
tive OF the state board of the w. G. L. u,
Mesdames Ketchum and Elizabeth Eagles
field Of Grand Rapids, aud one or two
other ladies, followed in hort addresses,
wnlle blSnop NllltSpie OF tTduu iAupluS
and the Rev. NJ. Nj. CGllan of Lansing also
spoke in support OF the same proposition.
Other ladies of the delegation were Mes
danes j. B. Porter and =. Y. Emery or
Lansing and Hodges of Grand Rapids.
Notwithstanding the efforts OF these
earnest people il seems wholly improbable
that the present legislature will raise the
age of consent above fourteen years, which
will be four years higher than 1T now is.
al Haa ya1 v
the house from the association Of prose
cutting attorneys asking that the statutes
relating TO the age Of consent be amended
and the age be fixed at II years.
The house committee on militf ~ affairs
has made a favorable report u. on meas
ure which, should 10 become a law. will be
the largest expenditure the state has ever
undertaken This l. the little matter OF
paying bounty to the amount OF almost
Sl5,OOO,CIO. Under the present law no sol
der enllsting prior To March Is, lst3 is en-
titled 10 bounty. After that date the al
lowances are as follows:
March Is to Nov. 10, G3................ 30
Nov. II, '63 TO Feb. 4, 'G4.............. 80
Feb. TO May "A, Observation-Disclosures. 100
Feb. 4 to April II. 90. .....,............ $50
This omits soldier, enisting in 'G1, o.
part OF % and %. and after April H. %
The new measure takes in all these and the
bounty goes To the widow or orphans in
case OF the soldiers death. The state will
be required 10 pay Sllsl5,300 according to
figures compiled by the quartermaster
general These show that the state fur
nisheG $4,000 men through the war. Under
the old bounty law, only 1850 men have
received bounty leaving 7l,420 who will
be affected by the new law. Allowing the
necessary reductions for bounty previous
ly received the total sum required under
the new law reaches nearly Sl5,OOO,OO0.
No such stupendous expenditure has
ever before been attempted by the state.
Tax levy is usually about Sl,500.OO per
annum. or 80 cents per capita. The pas
sage OF the bounty law would Jump the
levy to about $4,000, 600 and run the per
capita tax up 10 Sc, or II times what it has
ever been before.
The bill providing for the establishment
OF home for feeble minded children was
introduced by Mr.. Croker the other day.
The object Of the home is set forth in the
bill as follows:
THE object OF the institution shall be to
provide 10y all proper and feasible means
the intellectual moral and physical culture
or that unfortunate portion of the com
nlTnf1+~NNno nave been born or by disease
may become imbecile or feeble minded,
and by a judicious and well adopted
course of instruction and training, 10
ameliorate their condition. and TO develop
as much "a possible their intellectual
faculties, TO reclaim them from their UNI
happy position and III them as far pos
sible, FOR future usefulness in society,"
The bill calls for an appropriation OF
$4,000 this year and OF $4,000 in 1883.
Trustees are 10 provide temporary home
and select q permanent site to be report
ed TO the next legislature. 1t should re-
ceive the hearty support Of every mem
Der.
The house has passed the bill 70 abolish
the superior court of Detroit, and an eff
fort was made 20 have the bill considered
in the upper house before the recess, but
the attempt was a failure.
w. A. Baker OF Berrien county is credit
ed with doing some very sliillful engineer
ing. He introduced IN the house n Joint
resolution requesting congress TO remove
the arrears Of pensions limit and 20 pen
sion soldiers and sailors over 81 years Of
age, etc, at about II O'Clock in the fore
noon. Before O'Clock in the afternoon
the resolution had been passed 10y both
houses, eugrossed and enrolled, and signed
by the governor. Thirteen official copies
OF the resolution were at once sent to
Washington.
Represe ntative Ashton introduced bill
the other day asking for an appropriation
for building four colony homes for chronic
insane and a contiguous cottage for resi-
dent physician at the Michigan asylum
for the insane. The total cost of
thus introducing the cottage SYSTEM
in connection with the institution named is
and it appears 10 be the most economical
plan yet suggested for the matter of car
ing for the overflow OF patients at the in
stitution. The measure also pro ides for
the erection OF n chapel with seating ca
pacity for 40 persons. containing in addi-
ton TO the usual chapel equipments
separate stage for concerts and dramatic
entertainments, the whole 20 cost about
$1,000, and a storehouSe 20 he built at
cost of something less than $1,000.
The bill providing that the primary
money shall he forfeited in school districts
whore the study OF the effects Of alcohol
on the human system is not taught was
defeated in the house
The senate has passed bill appropriate
Ing SS,5S1 for state weather service and
has also adopted a resolution asking
Michigan senator's and representatives in
congress to take speedy action upon the
measure for the purchase by the general
government of the Portage lake canals as
recommended by the commission of the
war department..
Representative Croker Is preparing q
bill to amend the law relating to the can
vass of votes. The hill will make IL the
I,ttxf If he 10